"Google Images quietly removes ‘exact size’ and ‘larger than’ search filters"

[JCHelios]

Quote

However, sometime in the past few days, Google removed the option to filter an Images search by the exact photo size or by a minimum resolution. These options have been available in Google Images for several years at this point and we’re not entirely sure why Google has suddenly removed them. The change seems widespread from what we can tell, with a Reddit thread amassing comments about the issue.

 

Google loves killing the things we love, but this has to be the worst thing they've done to us since removing the ability to press backspace to go back on Chrome. ("Yeah, well, some of us know how to type and like using it, soooooo... Didn't think about THAT, did ya, Google?" —Riley)

Aw, who am I kidding: This is even worse! Being able to search for images of a certain specified resolution is useful, dagnabbit!
 

Quote

If you’re curious where this functionality was used, it’s a helpful tool for many in finding suitable wallpapers or images at a very specific resolution. It’s probably not the most widely used tool, but it’s a functionality that will be missed by many.

 

In fact, just today, Windows Update replaced my default Windows 10 desktop background with a much worse variation. So the very day I need a granular Google Image Search the most is the day it goes away! What the heck, Google — are my wallpaper-hungry eyeballs suddenly not good enough to sell to advertisers?? 

 

https://9to5google.com/2019/08/29/google-images-exact-size-filter-removed/

 

EDIT: It occurs to me that Google's mission statement is: "To organize the world's information and make it universally accessible and useful." This is definitely a step away from that. 

[Fnige]

List of how exact size and larger than is useful:

1. Limits on photo size
2. Dont want low quality pics
3. Wallpaper images
4. Finding the source for a web comic/manga

 

Please give me more

[JCHelios]

14 minutes ago, SlimyPython said:

List of how exact size and larger than is useful:

1. Limits on photo size
2. Dont want low quality pics

 

Please give me more

Hopefully an artist/designer/front-end dev/blogger chimes in to answer your question in detail. It seems safe to say that any time you need to actually USE a picture for something, professionally, its characteristics (including size) become important. Image Search still lets you filter by usage rights, so clearly people are using permissively-licensed pictures as part of their jobs. 

Maybe exact resolution isn't as important in these days of Responsive Web Design as it was in the 1990s ("This site best viewed in Netscape Navigator at 800x600 resolution!") But to go so far as to get rid of the search feature feels nuts. 

[GilmourD]

That sucks. I use exact resolution for finding wallpaper images...

[Salv8 (sam)]

1 hour ago, JCHelios said:

Aw, who am I kidding: This is even worse! Being able to search for images of a certain specified resolution is useful, dagnabbit!

i use it all the time to find the source of a web comic/manga, it's not just useful,

it's required!

[harryk]

This is baffling to understand why they would remove it. I don't know why they would axe a fully functional feature. Maybe they did a complete backend overhaul and the new system does not (yet?) support this type of search.

 

Hope it comes back. I frequently used it with reverse image search to find a higher resolution copy of an image I already had.

[Guest]

4 hours ago, SlimyPython said:

List of how exact size and larger than is useful:

1. Limits on photo size
2. Dont want low quality pics

 

Please give me more

Real images have curves. #ImagePositivity #PlusSize

[williamcll]

Normally the higher resolution images are the source photos, now we're just stuck with reposts.

[soldier_ph]

So one size fits all ?

 

/s

[Vode]

Why don‘t you guys use Duckduckgo again?

[RejZoR]

LMAO, that's the most retarded thing one would ever do. And people think Google shit is the best ever just coz it's from Google. I present you exhibit A as prime example of maximum stupidity. Why the hell would ANYONE ever sack these parameters? Like people already said, there are times when you're looking for maximum resolution image. Either because you need maximum resolution for obvious quality reasons. Especially when you have pages upon pages of low quality shit of same image and you need to dig out larger one. Bizarre design.

[TheNamelessOne]

Why don't they just take it away entirely?

I mean they already took away the view image, now they took away this, what's next?

Fuck you Google.

[DeScruff]

Shit this sucks. I use "exact size" to search for clean images of old videogames.

You can search Phantasy Star IV and half the images will be ugly blury upscaled .jpgs with someone's watermark.

Or you could search with the exact resolution the game ran at 320x224, (or 2x resolution) and 95% of the results were pngs or bmp, of the actual game.

 

This is specially true of obscure Gameboy games.

[Rohith_Kumar_Sp]

On 8/30/2019 at 4:17 PM, Vode said:

Why don‘t you guys use Duckduckgo again?

how do you reverse image in Duckduckgo? 

[kuddlesworth9419]

I actually used that pretty frequently. Seems a bit stupid to remove it if you ask me.

[RejZoR]

7 hours ago, Rohith_Kumar_Sp said:

how do you reverse image in Duckduckgo? 

By using TinEye of course. Just not Google.

[TechyBen]

On 8/30/2019 at 3:18 AM, harryk said:

This is baffling to understand why they would remove it. I don't know why they would axe a fully functional feature. Maybe they did a complete backend overhaul and the new system does not (yet?) support this type of search.

 

Hope it comes back. I frequently used it with reverse image search to find a higher resolution copy of an image I already had.

Money. See the other replies. It stops scraping/copyright infringement to some extent. Saves processing/sorting power...

 

In other news, I asked Bixby "Find my photos of my cat"... it did. I never told it what my cat was, and it knew my photos on my phone (just Cat finding AI, but scary nonetheless).

[Rohith_Kumar_Sp]

10 hours ago, RejZoR said:

By using TinEye of course. Just not Google.

does TinEye have the 
 

Quote

 ‘exact size’ and ‘larger than’ search filters"

??

[vorticalbox]

On 8/30/2019 at 3:18 AM, harryk said:

This is baffling to understand why they would remove it. I don't know why they would axe a fully functional feature. Maybe they did a complete backend overhaul and the new system does not (yet?) support this type of search.

 

Hope it comes back. I frequently used it with reverse image search to find a higher resolution copy of an image I already had.

they probably looked at the usage and saw that not many people were actually using it.

[The King of the Undead]

8 hours ago, vorticalbox said:

they probably looked at the usage and saw that not many people were actually using it.

yeah but it was probably more trouble to remove.

[tech.guru]

guys before you blow a gasket just use the advanced search

https://www.google.ca/advanced_image_search

 

they just got rid of the drop downs to cleanup the interface

[tech.guru]

4 minutes ago, VegetableStu said:

removing a frequently used function to behind additional multiple clicks/pages is bad design.

its not frequently used or google wouldnt have removed it.

the average user doesnt even understand resolution or size

 

it was no doubt to cleanup the interface and many developers do this over time to their programs.

its still available through advanced search if you need it.

 

if you see the homepage of google you will see this fits with their philosophy and why they have been so successful. its a simple clean page to just search with minimal clutter.

[tech.guru]

11 minutes ago, VegetableStu said:

before

"average user": 0 clicks because "no one uses it

"advanced user":

• #0 don't find search
• #1 click tools
• #2 click size
• #3 select field
• #4 type resolution
• #5 enter
• wait 1: page loads

 

after

"average user": 0 clicks because "it doesn't exist"

'advanced user":

• #0 don't find search
• #1 click settings
• #2 click advanced search.
• wait 1: page loads (results hidden away)
• #3 select field
• #4 type resolution
• #5 click search.
• wait 2: page loads (results return)

 

removing a frequently used function to behind additional multiple clicks/pages is bad design.

this is your opinion is not based on fact, google has to appeal to billions of users and the big reason is simplicity.

these same arguments are used over and over again by power users when developers change their UI to be more streamlined.

 

the list goes on,

firefox

office

windows

 

but developers have the hard task of making existing user base happy when trying to make interface simple and easy to use. the overall industry is going to towards minimalism

see, https://www.nngroup.com/articles/characteristics-minimalism/

 

and having a banner removes space used for displaying images. it also introduces an option users may accidentally turn on get confused and find it difficult to turn off.

 

you will have to accept this fact, this service isnt designed just for you but billions of other users. 

[tech.guru]

8 minutes ago, VegetableStu said:

how is trying out google options not fact?

cleaning up functionality without regard of the userbase, usability, and continuity, for the sake of visual design, is BAD DESIGN.

 

you're ignoring my point. I'll end it here.

they have the numbers to look at the user base and how often and number of people who used the feature.

your missing the point and conflating your self as the single user base google concerns themselves with.

 

they have many user groups to consider when designing and applying interface changes. you are ignoring this fact.

I wont deny it may impact your workflows or others when trying to find an image.

 

however, the feature must have not been used that much by the 99.99% or whatever google saw of the other user groups who just wanted to search for a image

 

[CTR640]

It has started, I can no longer see the exact resolution size.

There is one understanding why google does this: they are the biggest company out there and a whole of people is dependant on it. Google thinks they can do anything and no one bats an eye, they'll simply complain and continue using it. It simply proves Google is extremely arrogant, selfish, ungratefull and they own the world. The biggest dictator that exists for now. The resolution being shown is number one 1st reason why I use it. Since they have removed it, there is no more reason for me to use it.